Worcester police focus on violent drug dealers

The Police Department's vice squad will continue to focus on getting drugs off the streets, but now the unit will focus on violent people entwined with the illegal drug trade.

Police Chief Gary J. Gemme said refocusing protracted investigations into looking at violent offenders in the drug trade allows for all investigative units within the department to work at curbing the gun, gang and other violence in the city.

“The emphasis now is to really look at individuals involved in the drug trade, but also if we are going to conduct protracted investigations to look at the links to gang activity, gun violence or histories of violence and focus our protracted investigations not only on getting the drugs but getting the violent offenders,” Chief Gemme said. “We believe that it is all related.”

The strategy against drugs is two-pronged. Vice officers will focus on violent offenders while other officers, many in foot patrols, will focus on street-level drug dealing.

Much of the violence in the city has some type of gang or drug link. Home invasions consistently have a link to drug dealing, as do many homicides.

Through crime analysis and investigation, police have found that many of the “shots fired” calls in the city involve drugs and gangs.

In 2012, the vice squad spent almost $65,000 in drug buys in several investigations. So far this year, those officers have spent $42,000 for the same purpose. The money comes from seized cash from previous drug investigations.

The chief believes focusing on the violent offenders allows for the department to better use that money. The time is better spent on longer investigations rather than using the same resources and possibly netting low-level drug dealers. Those low-level dealers are easily replaced, the chief said.

“Someone with a violent history is not easily replaced,” Chief Gemme said. “If we are going to operate with limited resources, the best way to address the violence is to have our entire investigative units focused on the violence that is taking place in the community.”

The vice squad's investigations have led to guns being pulled off of the streets.

From Jan. 1 to June 10 this year, the vice squad has executed 47 search warrants, made 277 arrests, seized $195,000, followed up on 131 text message tips and confiscated 14 cars and nine guns.

In 2012, the vice squad made 91 searches with warrants, made 432 arrests, seized $337,000, followed up on 78 text message tips and confiscated 17 cars and 24 guns.

When a case is completed in court, half of the seized money goes to Worcester police and the remaining half goes to the district attorney's office.

While the vice squad focuses on violent offenders, foot patrol officers identify the low-level dealers and the buyers involved in street-level dealing. This focus will help with neighborhood quality of life by making it harder for the dealing to take place, the chief said.

These types of street-level cases do not require as much time and money as the larger investigations involving violent offenders, he said. There is already a permanent foot patrol in Main South. The department added a gang unit officer to that patrol and could add a vice squad member as well.

“We want to focus on what people see on a regular basis that negatively affects their quality of life,” Chief Gemme said. “That is the open air, retail level drug dealing. There are pockets in the city where this exists.”

The department can tap federal authorities in larger cases as well. Two Worcester police officers are assigned to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.